The stifled smiles of the other troops was satisfying. Warrick didn't pretend to know much about the inner workings of the barracks, but he did know a thing or two about shoving aggressive young men together for endless stretches of time and he knew his dress-down of this particular soldier would produce some good-natured ribbing for a while. No one would pass up a chance to tease their commander.

Again, the response surprised him. He'd expected to be glared at and told to shut up, or simply ignored if he didn't manage to anger the man enough to bother with a rejoinder.

"As magnanimous as that offer is, I don't sleep with killers, government-approved or not," he said, then made a show of looking the man up and down as they got closer to the truck, letting his eyes linger on the musculature he could imagine beneath the bulk of kevlar. "Or at least I try not to make a habit of it."

Then it was his turn to smirk as he hauled himself up into the vehicle.